


Star Child

by JayBirdJoker



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Drama, F/M, Family, Friendship, Haha I'm lying people will die., Manipulation, Romance, Trust Issues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-15
Updated: 2015-07-13
Packaged: 2018-03-22 19:34:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 16,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3741037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JayBirdJoker/pseuds/JayBirdJoker
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mabel gathers up the courage to break up with Gideon herself. The two part on good terms and fate takes a step sideways...</p>
<p>Or in which Mabel breaks up with Gideon and he tries to be her friend without bringing any creepy romantic stuff into it. It's harder than he thinks. A secret family history and that demon he summoned aren't making things easier and being allied with the Pines twins leads to more trouble than he ever expected. </p>
<p>Especially when he finds out there's a third Journal and he begins to suspect who has the first...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Everything had to be perfect.

The perfect people had to be in place. He needed the perfect lighting to set the mood. Perfect menus to display the perfect taste this place had. Perfect table with the perfect dishes and perfect tablecloth. He needed the perfect waiter to serve them. The last one had been  _terrible_.

He looked over every single detail and so far the only thing that wasn't perfect was  _himself_.

He was a nervous wreck! Oh, sure, he was fine on the outside as he had the restaurant staff reposition the dishes on the table for the fifth time, but inside? He felt like he was going to melt into the floor and die. He knew that this was getting ridiculous, the table was circular and they only really needed two of everything but he couldn't help it. Maybe if everything  _else_  was perfect, his pudding cup wouldn't notice that  _he_  wasn't.

"Is this perfection, Sir Gideon?" one of the restaurant managers asked, gesturing at some empty wine glasses he repositioned. They weren't even going to  _use_  those.

The man was completely polite but Gideon could sense his irritation. How  _dare_  he show that attitude when Gideon was paying them  _triple_  then what they asked for? He bared his teeth, ready to snap but a glance at the clock told him he was running low on time.

"It's fine," he grumbled, waving the staff away.

As soon as they left, he took a seat in the back, facing the door so that his sweet Mabel would see him before anyone else. He tapped his fingers on the tablecloth nervously.  _Not_  impatiently because he wouldn't blame Mabel for being late, no, he'd blame her clocks or whatever tried to keep her away from him. Still, he couldn't have her walking in on him when he was acting like he was angry at her for not being early. He clenched his fists to stop his tapping and instead fiddled with his amulet around his neck.

When he found himself using the power of the amulet to rearrange the items on his table for the _sixth_  time he realized this wasn't much better.

He demanded a menu from a waiter and decided to focus on that. This would put things out of order for a second, he'd have to cut off any conversation he had with Mabel to ask for her menu... unless he let her borrow his? Yes, that would seem like something a good boyfriend would do. Share.

Maybe... maybe that was the problem? Was there a sharing problem? He wasn't an idiot, he knew something was wrong with his dates with Mabel. She always seemed put off by something and she didn't like the terms he used when he called her his girlfriend or anything romantic. But surely that's what they were? He'd never done this before and he was doing everything he knew how...

Was romance the problem? How could they be boyfriend and girlfriend without romance? He looked back at the table decorated with the highest quality of items The Club could offer. Even though she enjoyed the fancy things on their first date, he had to remember that she did come from a shack. Maybe this was too much? That... that was probably it! She did seemed put off by that lobster and that macaw and the boat-ride... Common people didn't date like that! Of course, it all made sense now!

Using the power of his amulet, he lifted everything up and shoved them under the table, then quickly looked around to make sure nobody had seen that. The table was bare and, to his surprise, actually did look much nicer that way and he rolled his eyes.

He had just barely picked up the menu again when he heard the door to The Club open and saw Mabel walk in.

"Mabel!" Gideon said cheerfully, lowering his menu and beaming at her.

"Hey... Gideon..." Mabel said awkwardly. She stood next to her chair and drew an imaginary circle on the table a few times. "We need to talk."

"Of course! I think sharing is important for a healthy relationship. Whatever you've got to say, just say it!" Gideon said quickly. He pushed his menu a little farther from himself and leaned forward to give her his full attention.

Mabel stopped drawing her circle and grimaced, looking to the side and twirling a lock of her hair around her finger. "Okay... I'm... I'm sorry, Gideon, but I can't be your girlfriend. I have to be honest with you."

...What? No, no, he just imagined that. She didn't _really_  say that. Didn't mean it. Not at all!

But she did.

He knew it.

Gideon stared down at the table. "I... I don't understand," he whispered. His heart felt like it was being crushed and his body just felt unreasonably heavy. Why was this happening? How could she do this to him? He didn't do anything wrong! Anger began to take over. This wasn't  _fair_! Didn't she know how much he tried to do for her and it still wasn't  _enough_?

"But we can still be be buddies? Wouldn't you like that?"

His thoughts halted and he managed to lift his eyes to meet hers. Mabel looked worried and _guilty_  and his anger evaporated and he hurt even more because  _gosh darnnit she was too kind_.

"Really?" He managed to whisper. Gideon had never settled for anything less than what he wanted but for  _her_...

"Duh! Of course!" Mabel said, looking extremely relieved. She swung herself onto her chair and scooted it forward. "And look! We can still have this nice dinner together, okay?"

Gideon just nodded and robotically reached for his menu. His eyes slid over it without taking in any of the words.

"Um, Gideon?"

He blinked, startled and realized he was gripping the menu in his hands far too tightly. Quickly he loosened his hold and laughed.

"Sorry, mind musta been elsewhere!" Gideon said, hastily straightening out the menu and putting his hands on his lap. He cleared his throat. "So! What... what are you hankerin' for?"

Mabel just smiled awkwardly. "I didn't actually get a menu yet."

"Oh, right." He raised his hand, accidentally banging it against the table and wincing in pain. "Waiter! A menu!  _Now_!"

"You alright there, buddy?" Mabel said, looking at his hand concernedly as a waiter handed her a menu and scurried away. Gideon's hands were still trembling from fury over the waiter's incompetence and he practically slammed them back onto his lap. His sweet marshmallow simply  _mustn't_  see him like this.

Except she wasn't his sweet marshmallow anymore, was she? She never was.

"Why... why don't you go ahead and order. I just need a moment to myself, if you don't mind."

"Gideon-"

He didn't stay to listen and fled the table into the bathroom. Someone else was in there and he screamed something at them - he couldn't remember what- and they ran out, leaving him alone. Gideon fumbled with the lock for a moment and when he was sure he was alone, he wrapped his hand around his amulet tightly and squeezed so hard that a tiny part of him worried it might break. But truly at that moment, he was just too furious to care. His whole body was shaking and he was breathing much too hard. He shut his eyes and was vaguely aware of the stalls of the bathroom trembling. His grip tightened further and the mirrors in front of him shattered into thousands of little shards.

It wasn't until he heard the porcelain toilets tremble that he realized he should calm down before he busted a pipe and ruined his shoes. His fingers shakily loosened their hold and he clasped his hands together as he looked around the room. Shattered glass was all over the floor and some of the stalls were hanging off of their hinges. All things considered, it wasn't that bad. Kicking some glass away, he opened a random window and then stepped out of the bathroom, using his amulet to lock it behind him. Whoever managed to open it would suspect that the one who destroyed the room probably went through the window. Even if they didn't come to that conclusion, nobody would ever suspect that sweet Lil' Gideon vandalized a room with his magic powers.

He hadn't even made it to his seat when he saw Mabel was peeking at him childishly from over the back of her chair. It took a second for him to manage a smile at her and she just tilted her head. After another second of staring, she leapt over the chair and bounded over to him, tugging at his sleeve and pointing to the exit.

"Come on, Gideon, let's get out of here," she said, grinning.

He stiffened and looked back at the table. "What about-"

She waved her free hand carelessly. "Psh, forget about it! We can eat at the shack!"

_That_  was something he hadn't expected to hear. He knew his father had brought up the business deal with Stan already but he wasn't sure how much Mabel knew about it. He'd been told Stan seemed pleased with the potential the deal had but that didn't mean Stan would actually like him or allow him into his home.

Especially now that Gideon would have to get his father to cancel the deal.

"I-I don't think that's a good idea puddin- I mean, Mabel," Gideon said, although he did follow her outside of The Club. To his relief, Mabel didn't react to his petname.

"Actually is was Dipper's idea!" Mabel said. "I gave him a call while you were doing your man biz-"

Man what.

"-and he said _I'm_  upset because  _you_  were upset and that we should probably hang out on my territory where I won't be so awkward and there won't be negative energy and blah blah blah... He totally looked that up on the internet. He usually sucks at this stuff."

Gideon frowned. "Dipper Pines... right. How is he?"

"He's great, I'm great, we'll be great!" Mabel said, now bouncing a little as she guided him down the road. "Oh my gosh! You and Dipper can hang out! I mean, he doesn't like girly things too much but I'm sure there's some tough man stuff for you to do!"

"...Right." Somehow this night was taking a turn he didn't expect. He was still heartbroken and she was obsessing over her brother? He looked at the ground. She really hadn't seen them as a couple, did she? She wasn't torn up about this at all.

Mabel pouted and elbowed him. "Oh, come on, Gideon, brighten up! How can you be my friend if you don't hang out with Dipper either? He and I come together!"

* * *

Before he knew it, Gideon was in front of the Mystery Shack. He had been here several times in the past few years but Stan would always find him and kick him off the property. It didn't appear as though he were home yet so this would be the first time he'd be inside the actual shack.

"I know the perfect snack to eat!" Mabel said, opening the door for him.

He stepped inside slowly - not nervous, just wary - and followered her into the kitchen. He watched her numbly as she went to the cupboard and pulled out some chips, throwing them onto to counter. Next, she pulled out a can of nacho cheese and forced it open.

"Any special toppings, Gideon?" she asked.

Gideon jerked back a little and looked away quickly as though he had been caught doing something bad. "N-No. Anything you like would be fine," he murmured.

With a shrug, Mabel turned her attention back to the cheese and poured it into a bowl in a microwave. Unable to help it, Gideon watched her intently. She was rocking back and forth on her heels, humming a little tune as the cheese heated up. He didn't have any idea as to how this would help. Mabel had just broken up with him and now they were hanging out only minutes afterwards? He didn't find this fun at all, it was just torture because he couldn't  _vent_  if she was with him. He still wasn't even sure  _why_  they broke up. Yes, he knew she never saw him in the romantic way, buy why? Did he come on too strong? Too soft? Was it his hair? It wasn't too big, was it? 

The microwave "dinged" and a bowl of nachos covered in hot nacho cheese was stuffed into his arms and he was being steered into the Pines' living room.

The first thing he noticed was Dipper Pines sitting on the couch watching TV with a bored expression on his face. He seemed to be trying his best to ignore them although Gideon could tell he was stiff.

"I brought nachos!" Mabel said, marching in ahead of him capturing Dipper's attention. "And I brought our main little man, Gideon!"

"Hey, Gideon," Dipper greeted, obviously not too thrilled to see him. He buried his head into some old book and turned away. "This probably isn't the right time but Stan seems to think you and Mabel are going to get married."

Gideon winced and Mabel choked on some nachos she had stuffed in her mouth. He worriedly thumped her on the back as she hacked them up. When her throat was clear she slumped against the couch, rubbing her forehead. 

"Yeesh, I forgot. Where did Stan even get that idea from?" Mabel asked.

"Um, right, about that..." Gideon mumbled with a nervous chuckle. "Just some business deal my daddy came up with. Wasn't  _real_  marriage... Just some... er... performances together." That was just a little bit of a lie but if Mabel was so nervous just about the idea of  _dating_  then maybe the topic of marriage should be avoided for now. Not to mention that saying it outloud just made it seem creepier than it had sounded at the time he proposed the idea to his dad.

"Mm hmm," Dipper said, flipping a page in his book.

Gideon glared at him. The kid was smarter than he thought. He touched his amulet just to read what he was thinking.

_"Wow, he looks terrible. Good thing Mabel hasn't noticed yet. I thought this would help but if she sees him like that it might make this worse..."_

Gideon quickly released his amulet and put his hand back underneath the bowl to support it, staring down at the nachos as though hoping they would suck him in. Even Dipper noticed how badly this was effecting him and if he knew Mabel better than anybody then that meant once Mabel got wind of his depression she'd be awkward with him again. Everything would be ruined... What even  _were_ they now? Friends? 

Mabel elbowed him and he winced, a heavy feeling in his chest suddenly hitting him. She had already sat down on the floor in front of the couch, flicking through the channels on the TV. "Look, Gideon, there's this show on here that talks all about these blinking shoes-"

Gideon sighed softly. She sounded so much happier then she had the past few days that it was actually beginning to hurt him. He lowered the bowl next to her and wiped the frown off his face, replacing it with the fake smile he used on the people of Gravity Falls.

"Would you look at the time!" he said as cheerfully as he could managed. "My daddy is probably right sick with worry!"

"Aww, you have to leave already?" Mabel asked with a pout. "You just got here!"

Dipper just raised an eyebrow.

He almost lost the cheery facade when he tried to speak so he just nodded.

"I'll come with you, then!" she said, beginning to stand up.

" _No!_ " he shouted, voice cracking just a bit.

Both Mabel and Dipper stared.

"I-I'll see you later," he said, running out of the house.

The last thing he saw was Mabel's horrified and guilty face.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Gideon almost does the unforgivable.

When Gideon got home, he hadn't expected his father to be in the sitting room looking over some papers. He thought he'd already be in bed by now.

"Sweet pea? What's wrong?"

Too late, Gideon covered his expression of distress. Bud Gleeful had already seen it and would probably attempt to smother him with his "affection" if he didn't distract him first.

He glared at him. "First thing tomorrow you're going over to the Mystery Shack and cancelling that deal," he said coldly.

Bud looked startled. "What? Are you sure you thought this through? Stan was-"

"What did I just say?"

Bud winced. "Al-alright then," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm sorry, son, did his niece do something that upset you?"

"What? No!" Gideon said quickly, jerking back and shaking his head. "I-I mean, yes, but... She didn't mean to... that's to say I didn't..."

He stuttered for a minute longer and then went silent, looking down on the ground, gripping his amulet in his fist again.

"That's fine, then!" Bud said quickly. "First thing in the morning I'll head over to the Mystery Shack. No problem there, no sir!"

"Very good," Gideon said, relaxing and shooing Bud away. As soon as the older man was gone, Gideon went straight to his room.

It only took a minute for him to trash the room and let everything burn.

* * *

"Oh, Dipper!" Mabel cried, flinging her arms around him. "I knew it was going to break his widdle ol' heart! I can't believe it, I feel so bad! What am I going to _do_?"

Dipper sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Ugh, Mabel, I don't know what to tell you except I told you so. If you had said no the first time-"

"It's too late now!" she said, shaking him a little. "I need to fix this! He's so sad and he's the first friend I've made since I got here!"

"He's not worth it," Dipper said. "He's just some nine year old kid who had a crush on you. You'll make more friends. You're Mabel! You're awesome!"

Mabel moaned and let him go, then flumped onto the floor, whimpering. Dipper just shook his head. "Alright, look, we'll deal with this in the morning. Just get some sleep, alright?"

She muttered something into the carpet.

"Come on, seriously?" He bent down and rolled her over. "Really, Mabel. If we go to him now it'll just make him more upset. We'll be better off going to see him tomorrow. Better yet, only call him tomorrow. Give him time."

She pouted at him. "Maybe I should just go out with him again."

DIpper shook his head quickly. "No, absolutely not. You were a wreck when you were dating him."

"And _he's_ a wreck when he's not dating me!"

"You got along just fine before he asked you out. He'll be fine."

"Do you really think so?"

"Yeah. Just you wait, Mabel. After you give him that call, you'll be friends again and live on... in... I dunno, happy friendship valley or something."

* * *

_Hey, Gideon. It's me, Mabel. We need to talk. Give me a call back, okay?"_

He'd been replaying that message this morning for the past five minutes, debating on whether or not to call her back. He liked Mabel a lot. Too much, actually.

And that was a problem.

_"Hey, Gideon. It's me, Mabel. We need to talk. Give me a call back, okay?"_

She was still willing to talk to him even though it was clear he wasn't over her. He wasn't sure how to feel about that. All he really knew was that there was a tiny voice in his head that said she wanted to admit she made a mistake. She felt guilty and would try to make him feel better by getting back together and carrying on on their dates for years to come and she would...

Probably be miserable for the rest of her life.

He hated this. The thing he wanted almost more than anything was something that once he possessed, wouldn't be what he _wanted_. He wanted to be happy with Mabel, but Mabel wouldn't be happy with him. It was a vile circle of disappointment all around.

Unless...

He persuaded her.

His hand brushed against his amulet. It was an ability he only used to make people do simple things like standing up on command or fetching things for him. It would be only too simple to adjust it and manipulate Mabel into liking him enough to date him. He could make her do anything he wanted and she wouldn't even know that she wasn't making any decisions so she'd still be happy. It was perfect.

Honestly, why hadn't he thought of it before? Of course, he'd need to test it out first just to be sure he would still be able to do it.

"Mother!"

Gideon waited for a minute, giving her a chance to answer his call. Quickly, he began to get annoyed. Hadn't he shouted loud enough?

"Mother! Get _over_ here!"

Again, there was no response. He growled to himself and slid off the couch to search the house himself. She had to be in the house somewhere, she _never_ left. The house was small, so it didn't take long to search all of the rooms. Yet, he didn't spot her anywhere.

He had barely reentered the sitting room when his father walked in looking very pleased with himself.

"I've done it, the deal is over," Bud said, smiling down at him. "We'll have to make adjustments for our shows now but I'm sure everything will be just fine and dandy."

Gideon just glared at him coolly. "Right. Where's mother?"

Bud's eyes widened. "P-Pardon?"

" _Mother_. Where is she?"

"Now, now, honey, it's a bit early. She's still in bed-"

" _Liar_!" Gideon snapped, stomping his foot. "She wakes up the same time as you and she is not in your bedroom, I already checked. Tell me where she is now or so help me I'll-"

"Alright!" Bud said, waving his hands in front of him. "I heard the ruckus you made last night so I reckoned you damaged a few things... She's just cleaning up your room. Now I know what you're going to say-"

" _What_? You know you two are _not allowed in there_."

"I-I thought it would make you feel better. There was no harm meant, just-"

Whatever Bud had to say, Gideon missed because he was already stomping to his room. The door was hanging off of its hinges due to his tantrum last night so he had a clear view of his room.

She had already moved chunks of wood and ruined furniture to one side of the room. Glass and splinters were already swept up but he could tell she hadn't gotten around to vacuuming up any of the ash yet. It took a minute for him to find her. The room was dark and her clothes blended in well, but he finally spotted her on the side of the room with the discarded furniture, delicately retrieving a few of his photographs that had been scattered. None of his photos of Mabel were burned and she seemed to be extra careful with them.

For some reason that just angered him more so he charged in.

"What are you _doing_?" Gideon growled.

Immediately she dropped the photos and clutched onto her vacuum, staring at him in terror. He advanced toward her, gripping his amulet tightly.

"You're not allowed in here. You're not allowed to touch my things!"

She was trembling now. "I... I..."

He stopped in front of her, glaring at her venomously. "You're lucky I need you right now."

Her eyes widened further but her trembling eased just a little. "N-n-need?"

"She can speak!" Gideon said mockingly, rolling his eyes. "Yes, need."

Slowly, as if scared he would attack her at any sudden movement, she loosened her hold on the vacuum and wrapped her arms around herself, giving him his full attention. "Wh-what is it... sw-sweetheart?"

His eye twitched. "Testing."

She blanched. "T-testing? But... but..."

"Yes, its been a while but I need an update..." Still holding onto his amulet, he looked down at it and stroked it with one finger. "It's the only way to get Mabel with me and I need to make sure there's no side effects."

Now she was just staring at him in disbelief.

Then, shakily... "N-n-n-no."

His eyes flashed. "What."

Her head shook slowly, and then desperately. "N-No. Y-You can't. Not... not again."

His grip tightened. "You don't really have a choice, _mother_."

"Sh-she'll know. There.... there are s-side effects." Her eyes darted around the room as if she just spilled out a great secret. "A-Always s-side effects. She won't be... she won't be _her_."

Gideon frowned as he considered her words, temper fading. "I suppose..." he drawled. "You do have some experience with that, don't you?"

She didn't say anything this time and Gideon crossed his arms, thinking. He had been testing out the power of his amulet on his mother ever since he discovered it. She had always been the most willing subject.

Once upon a time, Gideon was the child model of Gleeful's Auto Sale. Born with white hair, fair features and a natural adorableness, already he was capturing the attention of the public and was used to advance many sales in his father's business.

Eventually, to his father's disappointment, he grew up and people were no longer enamoured with "Bud Gleeful's little baby boy." Sales suffered and Bud became less focused on Gideon and more on his failing business. Young and foolish, Gideon had missed his father's attention so when he discovered the Journal two years ago and retrieved the amulet, his mother was quick to offer her assistance and the two worked together so that they could all be a family again.

It wasn't until after Gideon mastered his amulet that he recaptured Bud's interest and "Lil' Gideon, Child Psychic," was born.

Of course, by then... Gideon realized he didn't need his father's conditional affection and his mother was no longer of any real use to him. He read the Journal, unlocked secrets and gained powers no one could even imagine. He used his new image to become the most admired person in Gravity Falls.

He had control over everyone.

Except the Pines family.

"I've only tested it out on you," Gideon said, relaxing as he realized this could work. He'd make it work. "Maybe it'll be different for her. I could try it... just once."

"Look at me."

This time the tone in her voice sent a childish shiver down his spine and he found himself doing the complete opposite of what she had wanted. He just stared down at the carpet blankly.

"Gideon Charles Gleeful. I-I said _look_."

Wincing, he looked at his mother.

Grey hair, pale face, trembling figure... There were dark bags under her dull eyes and her whole body was hunched over even though she was trying to stand straight. She was thin, much too thin when compared to her husband and child. It was rare that he would talk to his mother when he was calm and there was a _reason_ for that. When he was angry, he could look and not _see_ what she was. But now... now that his anger was mostly gone...

"Just... just go," Gideon murmured, looking away again. "Get out of my room."

Obediently, she left and Gideon was alone.

* * *

It had been almost two days since Dipper helped Mabel send that message to Gideon. Yesterday she had waited by the phone, ignoring most of her work at the shop and even declined Wendy's offer to show them her spot on the Shack's roof where Dipper made a personal discovery about himself.

His crush on Wendy.

Somehow Mabel caught on to it and although it cheered her up for a little while, knowing her brother had his first crush, she was depressed again when the day passed and Gideon still hadn't called. Now it was day two and they would be closing up the Shack soon, Wendy had just invited them to hang out with her friends once Dipper lied about being thirteen.

Mabel was less than enthusiastic.

"Gideon still hasn't called back," Mabel said, putting her hand on the phone gently. "I guess we're not going to be makeover buddies."

"I'm sorry, Mabel," Dipper said, looking at the door Wendy went through longingly. "Maybe tomorrow?"

She buried her head into her arms.

Dipper nudged her gently. "Come on, a night with Wendy and her friends is sure to cheer you up!"

"You mean cheer _you_ up," Mabel said. "Go ahead without me."

The thought of being alone with a group of teenagers made him more nervous than he was willing to admit. "I told Wendy we'd _both_ go and I can't just leave you here like this."

"I'm really not up for it."

Dipper sighed and then smiled at her. "Alright. I'll tell Wendy we can't go. We'll have a movie night with Grunkle Stan."

Mabel just nodded and left the shop, presumably up to their room.

When Dipper opened the door leading to the front lawn, he was met with an eyeful of white hair and blue eyes.

"Gideon!" he yelped, leaping back. In front of him, Gideon did the same except he actually fell onto his back.

"Did you really have to yell?" the younger boy asked, raising an eyebrow and giving him an unimpressed look as he stood back up. He grimaced and brushed some of the dust off of his suit.

"I-I didn't expect you," Dipper explained. "Just... wow. I figured you'd call first or... you know. Never... contact us again."

Gideon paused in his brushing and laid a hand on his bolo tie, giving him an unamused look. Yikes, he probably shouldn't have said it like that. Mabel had just made the whole situation seem so hopeless that Dipper honestly hadn't expected him to come back.

"Sorry," he said quickly. "So you're here to see Mabel? Right?"

"Yes," Gideon replied, now working on his hair. "It was a last minute decision. I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

"No," Dipper said. "Mabel was just bummed that you didn't call back. We were going to stay in tonight but if you're here to make things right... You... _are_ here to make things right, aren't you?"

Gideon averted his eyes. "Is it really any of your business?"

Dipper frowned and found himself standing up just a little straighter. "Um, she's _my_ sister, dude. Who do you think had to watch over her because _someone_ was busy guilt tripping her?"

Blue eyes met brown sharply, though Dipper was pleased to see some guilt in them this time. "I was trying _not_ to make her feel guilty! Afterwards, I couldn't call in the state I was in. If I had... I... I could have... why am I even telling you this?" Gideon seemed to deflate a little bit. "Just... let me see Mabel."

Dipper stared at him. The kid was really a mess from this just like Mabel. In Dipper's eyes, it was pretty obvious he still had that crush on his sister, but he seemed willing to put it aside for now. His thoughts abruptly flickered to Wendy and he blushed, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Alright," he sighed. "As long as you swear you won't try to do your creepy romantic stuff, you can see her."

Gideon brightened immediately. "Dipper Pines, you have my word!"

Dipper gave him an uneasy smile and moved out of the doorway to let him in.

"It's just up the stairs," he said. "Through the attic there's another room... She should be there."

Gideon grimaced at the stairs and it took a lot of Dipper's willpower to not laugh at the obvious problem the younger boy would have with them.

"If Mabel asks, tell her I'm going to talk to Wendy for a sec," he said. He added, just to poke a little fun, "Good luck."

* * *

Gideon hated stairs. He wasn't exactly the most _fit_ person but seriously...

He shook the ridiculous thoughts out of his head and began his 'trek.' There were only just above a dozen steps so it didn't take long for him to make it up them.

What he saw in the attic made him stop in his tracks.

The window.

A triangle. He knew what that was, but why was it _here_ -

"Gideon!"

He almost jumped a foot in the air when Mabel charged at him and wrapped her arms around him in a violent hug.

"You're here!" she squealed.

He squirmed in her grip, heart beating rapidly at the contact. Any thoughts of that triangle banished from his mind.

"I'm sorry for not calling back," Gideon said when she let go. "I just reckoned it'd be better for me to come here directly."

Mabel took a few steps away from him. "You're not still upset, are you?"

Gideon smiled. "I'll be honest. I am, just a bit. I-I mean, you're really the nicest girl I've ever met and we share so many interests I couldn't help myself." He took a deep breath. "But these things happen."

"I'm sorry that I didn't see you that way," Mabel said. "And for dragging it on for so long."

A part of him was tempted to apologize for forcing her into dating him but it was overcome by a stronger desire to not be blamed for it. She was doing such a good job of doing this by herself so... why talk?

"I really _do_ like you, Gideon. I just prefer us to be friends! We can have so much fun this summer!" She gave him a sad smile. "Will you be okay with that?"

"Absolutely!"

Mabel began punching him playfully. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she cried.

Gideon chuckled and rubbed his arm. "Ow."

"So what do you want to..." Mabel trailed off and then slapped her hands onto her cheeks."Oh, wait! Dipper... He was going to stay home with me!"

She ran down the attic stairs, leaving Gideon alone. Thrown off by this sudden development, he stood there for a few seconds. He shook his head and sighed, then followed after her.

By the time he made it down the cursed stairs, Mabel was running back into the Shack from where she was meeting with her brother and a group of teenagers. She stopped in front of him and grinned.

"Guess what?" she asked. "Dipper has a crush on Wendy the cashier girl! He said he would stay with me tonight instead of hanging out with her but... but I should really go with him. Show some support, you know?"

Gideon was about to protest - they had just barely become friends again - until he remembered what Dipper had said earlier about him _being_ there for her when Gideon wasn't. He supposed he owed the boy something...

"I understand," Gideon said. "Ya'll go on ahead and have fun!"

Her grin widened. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Now that all their relationship problems were over and done with... well, just being friends would be a piece of cake!

"It's a da-" Gideon quickly cut himself off. "I-I mean, okay. Tomorrow."

Mabel gave him one last hug and ran back to the van.

This... this was going to be harder than he thought.

 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dipper experiences Gideon's powers firsthand and has his fortune told.

To say Dipper was relieved that he would hang out with Wendy and the "cool kids" was an understatement. He was _thrilled_ (and at the same time felt like he was going to puke) to finally get close to something like a social life. Mabel would be with him too and she was a social rockstar.

"Ready for a night of romance and adventure?" Mabel asked, punching his arm.

Dipper flushed and shoved her and looked around to make sure no one had heard. Lee and Nate were wrestling each other while Tambry was taking photos. Luckily, Wendy was busy chatting with Robbie and Thompson.

"Shh! It's not like that, Mabel!"

She just giggled and skipped toward the teens. Wendy glanced over at them with interest and Dipper was pleased to see she seemed happy to see them both coming.

"Mabel's coming with us," Dipper said.

Wendy leaned down a little and gave Mabel a high-five. "Sweet, just give us a sec to make some room in the van for you two," she said. "I've got big plans for tonight!" She and Thompson went to the back and began to move things around, leaving the twins and Robbie alone.

Already Dipper was feeling awkward. Wendy had only just told him their names when Mabel had come up and interrupted them. It was clear that the teen wasn't interested in him and Mabel at all. He seemed determined to look anywhere else except them. When Dipper noticed him do a double-take at the Shack, he turned to see what he was looking at.

Gideon was at the door to the Mystery Shack, waving at Mabel who eagerly waved back. From the corner of his eyes, Dipper saw Robbie raise an eyebrow. Immediately he began to panic. Lil' Gideon was a _kid_. Sure, Dipper technically was one as well but it was more obvious with Gideon. His lifestyle was all about his adorableness and the whole town knew it.

"Um, is that Lil' Gideon?" Robbie asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. "You _know_ him?"

Mabel grinned and opened her mouth but Dipper quickly slammed his hand over it. "No! No, he was just a customer! He's still just a kid so... you know, we don't share that much of the... same interests."

"Huh, didn't think he'd shop there," Robbie mused. He pulled out his phone and began swiping at the screen, apparently losing interest.

Dipper sighed in relief when Robbie wandered off to the other side of the van. When he felt something warm and wet touch his hand, he quickly pulled it away from Mabel's mouth. "Eugh! Did you just lick my hand?"

Mabel pouted at him. "Why didn't you say we knew Gideon?"

"It wasn't personal..."

"It _felt_ personal."

"No, I just-"

"Come on guys, van's ready," Wendy said.

"It really wasn't personal, okay? Let's just have a good time," Dipper said, climbing into the van.

* * *

"What are you doing here, Gideon?"

Gideon scowled when he came face-to-face (more like face-to-knees if he was going to be honest about this) with Stanford Pines.

"Oh, Stanford, what are you doing here?"

Stan just glared at him. "Your old man cancelled the deal. There's no reason for you to be here, you little weasel."

Gideon was about to retort until he saw what the older man was holding. "...Are those license plates?"

He quickly threw them to the side into the bushes. "What? Are you a cop now?" Without waiting for a reply he opened the door to the Gift Shop and held it open, looking at Gideon expectantly. Surprised, Gideon stepped inside.

"Ugh, Wendy left already?" Stan asked, glaring at the counter. "How many times do I have to tell her that _just_ because the clock says its time to go doesn't mean she can leave this place unattended! There could be crooks around here!"

"The only crook around here is you, Stanford. Besides, what, pray tell, would they steal?" Gideon asked, tapping a bobble-head. It bobbled once before falling apart. He smirked.

"Ya gotta pay for that," Stan grumbled, though he didn't wait for payment and instead opened the register to begin counting the money. Gideon watched him for a minute and then began to look around at the merchandise.

Everything was ridiculously overpriced and cheaply constructed. Yet, Gideon knew that eventually every single item in the shop would be sold. Tourists (and most of the town) were morons. Rich, rich morons. It was a shame that Bud and Stanford didn't get along on their own, they'd probably make a killing.

Gideon was almost ashamed to be interested in some of the items for sell. All of _his_ merchandise just had his face plastered onto them. Everything here was different. Some of it was actually stuff that Stan seemed to have found in the forests. He wondered...

There was a bookshelf with a few knickknacks and, more importantly, books. It only took a minute to realize the one he was looking for wasn't there. He jumped when Stan cleared his throat from directly behind him.

"Didn't take ya for a reader," Stan said, hand on the wall to support him as he leaned over him a little. "Figured that ridiculous hair was to compensate for the lack of brains."

"'Course I read!" Gideon said defensively. He brushed a hand against his hair. "And nothing's wrong with my hair!"

Stan snorted and rolled his eyes. "Anyway, are you going to buy anything? I'm gonna close up for the night since all my employees have gone missing."

It would be easy to mock everything in the store and insult Stan at the same time... but the old man hadn't thrown him off the property today. He had been allowed in the shop. Stan was almost civil this time and Gideon had no idea why. It was almost scary that he hadn't been kicked out yet. Or worse... _swept_ out.

"Maybe another time," Gideon said carefully.

Stan grimaced but didn't say no. Now he was _sure_ he old man was up to something.

He actually was scared now.

But, he wasn't going to turn down future opportunities to explore the land around the Shack. He'd keep it civil like Stan was and figure out what he was up to later. For now? He'd be heading home.

* * *

They were doomed. Whatever was in this convenience store was going to kill them all!

He shook Mabel's shoulders to get a reaction from her. Her head clunked to the side and she gurgled something. His attention was diverted from her when he spotted a sheet of paper fall out of her sweater pocket. There were some number on it... a phone number?

"What...?" Dipper picked it up and peered at the number and the name listed above it. "Wait, this is Gideon's number!"

Of course! Mabel must have kept the number with her to call Gideon in case he didn't contact her today. He was no real fan of Gideon but this was the only other number he knew aside from the police. After a quick glance around to make sure none of the teens were paying any attention to him, he dialed the number and held the phone up to his ear.

"Please be home, please be home, please be home..." Dipper chanted, hopping up and down in place, spinning the cord around a finger. "Come on, answer the phones you little cree-"

"Lil' Gideon's Tent of Telepathy, Lil' Gideon speaking!"

"-peeeerrfect! Gideon! Wow, I am glad to hear from you!"

"Who's... Oh! Why, Dipper Pines! What in the heaven's is making you sound so flustered?" Gideon sounded surprised, but not too upset that it was Dipper calling and not Mabel. Dipper took that as a sign that he wouldn't hang up on him. Still, he'd have to be fast.

"Okay, listen up, Gideon, Mabel probably told you that we're hanging out with-"

"Mabel! How's she doing?"

"You literally saw her like an hour ago, man. That's not importa- Well, it is! I need your help."

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "Alright, whatcha need, friend?"

"This place we're at is haunted! I know it sounds crazy but I'm seeing floating brains, skeletons... there's something wrong with this place!"

More silence. He thought he heard some pages of a book being flipped and Dipper almost cursed at the thought of not bringing his journal. It probably had something in it about ghosts! What was Gideon even doing?

"Where are ya'll again?"

"The old abandoned _Dusk 2 Dawn_ store!"

"Hadn't ya'll heard that place was haunted?" Gideon asked, sounding faintly amused. This time Dipper was sure he heard a book shut.

"This isn't a joke, Gideon! I think it's really dangerous here but if I say anything they'll just think I'm a scared little kid!"

"Alright, alright, don't get so worked up. I'll be right over."

"No! Not _you,_ I just need you to call someone to kick us out-"

The phone line went dead as Gideon hung up.

Things went downhill from there.

Only ten minutes later and almost all of the teens were gone. Picked off one-by-one it was only Dipper and Wendy left. Who _knew_ what happened to Robbie.

Whatever was possessing Mabel was too busy laughing at the chaos to notice the door slamming open. Dipper waved his arms wildly to turn himself around to see who had opened it. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or horrified that it was only Gideon.

"What in tarnation!" Gideon shouted, eyes wide and taking a small step back. He put his hand onto his chest and gripped his tie tightly.

"Gideon! Get out of here!" Dipper cried just as everything hit the ceiling. Before he knew it, he was completely upside down. "Get help!"

Gideon's eyes flickered to him for just a moment, then darted around the room until they landed on Mabel. She was still floating above them all, eyes glowing white and laughing wickedly. Immediately he ran toward her.

"Mabel!"

Her head twisted around with a loud crack, causing both Gideon and Dipper to wince. Her mouth opened and pink slop (smile dip, perhaps?) poured out, landing only a few inches from the smaller boy.

"Enough!" Gideon screamed.

He raised his hand and then slammed it down. Immediately everything that had attached to the ceiling was forced back onto the ground. Barely a second later Dipper felt himself drop and he landed directly on top of Wendy behind a cabinet. He yelped and scrambled off of her, spouting out apologies.

"Dipper, what's going on?" she asked, grabbing his shoulder and looking at Gideon who was stomping towards Mabel furiously. "What's Gideon doing here? How's he _doing_ this?"

"I...I have no idea," Dipper whispered. "H-he's supposed to be a _fraud_."

Wendy tugged him toward her and then pulled the door of the cabinet open. "Come on, we gotta take cover!"

"I... but Mabel!" Dipper said, backing away from her. "She needs my help!"

"Dipper, what are you doing?" she called. "Get over here! Hide!"

"Just stay down!" he shouted back, making his way frantically toward Gideon and his possessed sister.

"Who dares interfere?" the _thing_ possessing Mabel growled.

"You!" Gideon shouted. His voice was completely different from the tiny, childish one he used when talking to audiences or to Mabel. "You're a fool for possessing my Mabel!"

He brought his arm up and clenched his fist, then, shakily as if fighting against some invisible force, swung it down. Mabel's eyes rolled and she was jerked in the air and lowered onto the ground with much more care than he'd given Dipper and Wendy.

Dipper had to rub his eyes when two spirits suddenly appeared and formed into an old man and an old woman. They looked about as threatening as a pair of fluffy bunnies. More importantly, their attention was solely focused on Gideon. He took advantage of this to crawl towards Mabel to make sure she was okay.

Although she was unconscious, she didn't seem to actually be hurt. Whatever the ghosts had been doing to her body didn't stay in effect... which was a relief because they did snap her neck. As quietly as he could, he dragged her behind a pile of merchandise and peeked back at the ghosts.

Gideon was glaring at them viciously and the ghosts adjusted their glasses.

"Why, you're just a child!" the old woman cried. It didn't seem to have registered that the "child" they were talking to had just taken control of the whole store.

Gideon's glare faltered as he seemed to realize something. He edged closer to the twins. "Really? Is that all? Begone, spirits, they're children too!" He gestured in Dipper and Mabel's direction.

"Well, why didn't they say so!" the old man said, putting his hands on his waist. "We could have sworn this place was swarming with only teenagers! Golly, were they the bane of our existence. Let me tell you-"

Gideon's eye twitched and his voice was strained. "I don't doubt it. This isn't the best time for storytelling though. It's late and we best be getting home."

"Oh, we completely understand!" the woman said cheerfully. "You young un's need your rest to grow up strong!"

The doors slid open and Gideon looked at Dipper expectantly.

Still shocked, Dipper stumbled to his feet and grabbed Mabel from  her armpits, prepared to drag her out. He glanced toward where Wendy was peeking from the cabinet and gave her a nervous smile.

"Come on," he stage whispered. Wendy scrambled out from her hiding place. "Before they change their m-"

"Wait just a minute!"

The doors shut again and the ghosts appeared in front of Wendy. Dipper's heart sank and Gideon let out a very inappropriate curse. Wendy fell down on her bottom and stared up at them fearfully.

"Now, ya'll didn't say anything about the teenagers leaving."

"But... they're my friends." Dipper said, ignoring Gideon's glower that was clearly telling him to keep his mouth shut. "Isn't there some way you can let them go?"

"That ain't wise, Dipper Pines," Gideon said coldly. "Leave em be and those teens will be fine... eventually. We best get out of here while we can."

Dipper glared at him and then turned back towards the old dead couple. "Well?"

They considered it.

"Do you know any funny little dances?"

Dipper bit his lip and looked at Gideon who stared back, looking just as baffled as he felt. For the briefest of seconds, Dipper considered doing the Lamby Lamby Dance. He shook the thought away and nudged Gideon instead.

"For the love of Pete," Gideon murmured, pulling out a brush and tidying up his pompadour. "Alright then, but you owe me, Dipper Pines!"

"Dipper Pines. Always the full name. What is with that, dude?"

Gideon ignored him and stepped forward, clearing his throat. In the next second, all aggression was banished and he was completely transformed into "Lil' Gideon."

_"Oh, I can see, what others can't see_

_It ain't some sideshow trick, it's innate ability_

_Where others are blind, I am futurely inclined_

_And you too could see, if you was widdle ol' me!_

_You two had a failed campaign_

_Life's never been the same_

_From your mind I can read_

_That a song is all ya'll need_

_So I thank ye... for your odd hospitality_

_Now say goodbye to... widdle ol' me!"_

Gideon finished his little dance, panting as the ghosts applauded him.

"Oh, that was adorable!" the old woman cooed.

"Your friends are free to go," the old man said, snapping his fingers. The lights flickered and the ghosts vanished.

As Gideon went to Mabel, Dipper looked around for any sign of Wendy's friends. He was relieved to see Lee's head come out from a pile of cereal boxes.

"Wh-what happened after everything went crazy?" Lee asked. The other teens were pulling themselves out of piles of junk, disoriented and exhausted.

"I...I don't even know, man," Wendy said, bringing a hand to her forehead. "Everything was floating and then Gideon showed up and then Dipper-"

"What's Gideon doing here?" Robbie asked, looking at the boy with a frown.

"Oh, um..." Dipper stuttered, looking at Gideon awkwardly. On one hand, Gideon was still a kid and his show was cheesy and fake but on the other he just saved their butts. Luckily he was still tending to Mabel so maybe he wouldn't hear him if he denied calling him and-

"Are we talking about Lil' Gideon?" Thompson asked, seeming more alert. Surprisingly, he wasn't as shaken as the others. Though, that could have been because he hadn't been paying attention to the haunting as much as the others.

"Cool. I've never seen him outside of a show," Tambry said, snapping a photo.

"Um... cool?" Dipper repeated. "Y-you like Gideon?"

"I guess he's alright. You know, for a little kid," Robbie said, shrugging and looking away. "Shouldn't be here anyway. It's probably past his bedtime."

...Dipper couldn't believe this. Were they _serious_?

"Speaking of bed, I'm beat," Nate murmured. "Maybe we shouldn't have eaten those snacks. They were probably expired. I can't remember _anything_."

"Ugh, what happened?" Mabel slurred. Dipper was at her side in an instant, almost knocking Gideon onto the floor.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

"I'm never gonna eat or do anything else ever again," she grumbled. Her hands went over her mouth to stop herself from puking.

"What is this?" Gideon asked, lifting up a package of Smile Dip.

It was slapped out of his hands by Mabel.

"Evil!"

* * *

_'Psychic Powers?'_

On a board in front of him, Dipper had written that in bold letters and pinned it on.

The night was over and done with. Mabel had made a quick recovery and was eating breakfast downstairs with Stan. Dipper, meanwhile, was going over the notes he wrote before he had gone to bed that night. The notes were sloppy, but thorough. He had written down everything just in case he forgot it in the morning. It had only been an hour and already he had a cork-board up. Pinned to it were theories and photos of a handful of Gravity Falls residents, including Gideon.

Dipper rubbed his arms uncomfortably as he stared at the photo. Who was Gideon Gleeful?

Ordinary nine year old?

Or something else?

One thing for sure, he was having second thoughts about letting him hang out with Mabel. Gideon was a real creep and although he said he wasn't going to try any romance stuff, Dipper still had a bad feeling. The kid wasn't normal. He was going to leave Wendy and all his friends behind! What kind of heartless jerk did that? Who was to say he wouldn't leave Mabel behind one day when he came across the strangeness of Gravity Falls that he was surely aware of?

He pulled out the newspaper clipping of the _Dusk 2 Dawn_ store and pinned it up as well, writing _'Ghosts'_ in red marker. He took a few steps back to observe it and the notes in the Journal as he chewed on a pen. He could feel Mabel creeping up behind him and shut the book, fully prepared to bring her up to speed.

"Whatcha up to, bro-bro?" Mabel asked, moving to his side to peer at his board. "What, you have a crush on Gideon now?"

Dipper shot her an annoyed look as she giggled and pulled the picture down, hopping onto the bed and grinning at it.

"We should go to another one of his shows!" she said cheerfully.

This time Dipper spat out his pen. "Absolutely not."

"Aw, come on!"

"That show was so cheesy," Dipper said, shaking his head. "Seriously, all he did was... pretend to read minds and tell fortunes and... and... Oh my gosh."

Mabel looked at him curiously as he began to have his own private freak-out session. Was Gideon's show real the whole time? Was he always reading their minds? Did he have mind control? Was he manipulating the audience this whole time with his very real powers?

"Dipper, you're starting to foam at the mouth."

Quickly, Dipper wiped at his chin with his arm and turned to Mabel. "Mabel, we have to go to Gideon's show again."

"Whoop!"

He shook his head. "No, not for fun! We have to see Gideon's powers up close. Last time we thought it was fake so we weren't paying attention. We have to see what he's up to."

"Powers? What are you talking about? And what do you mean what he's up to?"

"His powers! Telekinesis!"

"That was just an _act_ Dipper, you said it yourself. He's cute and so is his widdle adowable act!"

"You... you don't remember?" Dipper asked, lifting his hat to run a hand through his hair. "I-I guess you were kind of out of it... Gideon was using real powers, Mabel. That's how he saved us from the ghosts. He stopped their powers with his own and gained control over the store. It was _crazy_."

Mabel was staring at him in disbelief. Then,

"That is so _awesome_!" she squealed. "We can do puppet shows! Or a haunted house!"

Dipper smacked his forehead. "You don't _get_ it!"

Mabel rolled her eyes. "No, I get it! Really, I do! But Gideon's my friend. He has powers, so what? He's not doing anything bad with them. You said he saved us with them."

"Maybe he hasn't done anything _yet_ , but-"

"Dipper, trust me, Gideon's a _doll_. He wouldn't harm a hair on our heads! You just want something to investigate. There's plenty of other stuff to figure out around here. You have your Journal!"

Dipper knew that she was right, sort of. He was pretty desperate to investigate something that probably wouldn't kill him. Gideon was a person, someone he could follow around and investigate around Gravity Falls easily, especially since he was a local celebrity.

"Okay, maybe you're right," Dipper said. "Let's see the show anyway. I'd like to see him use those powers. When's his next one?"

"Tonight."

* * *

"Now I hope you don't intend to leave before the show starts, young man," Bud said. "You were out pretty late last night."

Gideon just rolled his eyes.

"Those Pines twins are going to be a bad influence on you."

"Who said I went out to see them?" Gideon asked. It was a bit annoying to think anyone could have an influence on him. He liked Mabel, but the idea of hanging around Dipper? He could tell that was going to be a problem.

In one night Dipper Pines had almost doomed a group of teenagers _and_ Mabel. Gideon hadn't shown it that night, but counteracting the ghost powers had taken a lot out of him. That much power over so many items could have forced the building to collapse. This time he even had to mind the human bodies in the room, making sure that they weren't harmed. The experience was completely new.

He was used to people, his audiences could get pretty large, especially when he traveled out of town. However, he didn't have to really interact with them that much. Even when he had one-on-one sessions he just read their reactions as he spouted nonsense.

People would come in with serious problems that they expected a little kid to solve. Most were romantic problems. It was why he had worked so hard on his dates with Mabel. He had been working so hard to avoid the problems he heard every day that he ended up causing a bigger one. His heart still ached at the memory.

The second most common problem was health issues. He was fairly certain that one-third of his past clients were either dead or had someone die after he read their fortune or answered their question. So many stories, so much history, so many life experiences.... He just eventually became numb to it all.

Gideon knew _people_ , but he didn't _know_ people. Already he had spent more time with the Pines twins than he had with anyone else aside from his parents. It was bizarre, how contact was so foreign to him even though he was a local celebrity and had gone to a public school with all the other kids of Gravity Falls.

Dipper Pines had seemed miffed that Gideon had been willing to leave those teens behind. The idea seemed good at the time. Gideon's number one priority had been to get Mabel and Dipper (for Mabel) out of there. Even now Gideon was not sure that he would have gone back for the teens. They'd never done anything for him.

They had also seen him use his powers. Although the ghost's powers appeared to have fogged up their memories, he knew for certain that Dipper and the cashier  girl would remember. Robbie Valentino may be a problem, but he would deal with that another time when it came up. What Dipper would say to Mabel was  mystery. The boy didn't like him for some reason. Gideon just wasn't sure if he was disliked enough for him to taint his name.

"Anyway, I believe you have more important things to worry about," Gideon said to his father.

"Now, now, nothing is more important than my so-"

"Get out of my room," Gideon hissed.

Bud was out of there faster than he could blink.

Huffing, Gideon went back to working on his hair, well aware that it was already perfect. Why did he have to have such _stupid_ parents?

When the phone ran it took all of his willpower to keep his voice pleasant.

"Hello?"

"Guess who?"

His bad mood vanished.

"Mabel!"

"Hi, Gideon! How you doing?"

"Now that you called? I'm doin' better than a pig in a pie eating contest."

Mabel giggled, causing the butterflies in his stomach to flutter. "I've always wanted a pig."

_Not to self: Buy a pig for Mabel._

"What were you doing before I called?" she asked.

"Just getting ready for a few clients before my show," Gideon replied.

There was a pause on the other end.

"Um... clients?"

Gideon nodded even though he knew she couldn't see him. "You know, customers who pay for me to give them a psychic reading."

"But your show is _hours_ away!" Mabel said. "You work all day?"

Well _someone_ had to pay the bills.

"Don't worry, Mabel! I only do it three times a week!"

"Summer is for _fun_." She sounded outraged and it pleased him that it was on his behalf. When she spoke again, she sounded sad. "I've seen your commercials, Gideon. Even if you're not performing your act, you're still working. You even said it on our... dates. Do you ever get time to spend with your friends?"

Usually he'd have no problem answering that. This time the words, _"I don't_ have _friends to spend time with,"_ couldn't come out.

She didn't wait for him to answer, thankfully. "Do you have fun performing?"

"Not as much fun as I do when I spend time with you," Gideon said quickly. That was really saying something, considering they had only spent one day together before he changed their playdates into actual dates.

"Then I have good news for you, bub. I'm going to your show tonight!"

* * *

Gideon had never looked forward to a show more than he did that night.

He may have made his show a little flashier than usual. Her certainly used more smoke and sparks this time, especially when Mabel cooed with each act he did. A few times he'd improvise and bring a dove or two to show off. He even did an extra musical number, to his father's panic.

"Now, I'm gonna need a volunteer from the lovely audience," Gideon said, beaming at the people. A dozen of their hands went up but his eyes went to Mabel who was waving both her arms eagerly. He was very tempted to call on her but the thought that the audience would think more of it stopped him. He'd have to come up with something else that would please her...

Dipper Pines was next to his sister, surprisingly. He looked unimpressed, unsurprisingly. With a mischievous grin, Gideon touched his amulet and influenced his hand to shoot up. Before he had enough sense to force it back down, Gideon pointed at him.

"You there!"

Dipper's mouth had dropped open and his eyes darted from his raised arm to Gideon disbelievingly. "U-Umm, I didn't..."

"Dipper Pines, isn't it?" Gideon asked, as though he had only heard his name in passing. "Come on up, don't be shy!"

Dipper seemed frozen in place. If Mabel hadn't elbowed him and whispered for him to go, Gideon might have used his power to make him walk onto the stage himself. The audience applauded when he stood up.

Flushed in embarrassment, Dipper walked onto the stage, Mabel cheering and whooping from her seat.

"You made that happen," Dipper said under his breath. It was obvious he had meant for it to be said accusingly but he seemed too amazed for it to come out as so.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Gideon replied.

"So... what are you going to do? Guess what number I'm thinking?"

The audience booed him, obviously disapproving of the way Dipper underestimated their Lil' Gideon. Though, the boy did ask a good question. What should he do to him? Something fake or something real? Gideon touched his amulet to brush against his thoughts.

_"This would be a good chance to see if his powers are real. If I think the wrong answer it'd prove he's reading my mind! No wait, but that would mean he knows I'm trying to trick him... Oh wait, what if he's reading it right now? Shoot! Uh, what was I supposed to do again?"_

Gideon had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from laughing. No, he wouldn't need to use real magic on Dipper. Besides, that just scared people.

"We're going to do a little psychic reading, Dipper Pines."

The audience made multiple sounds of approval. Gideon rarely did psychic readings for an audience, usually they paid for private sessions. In the shadows, Bud pulled at a rope to raise another curtain, revealing a shiny white table with two seats. Gideon gestured towards it and then sat down.

"A reading?" Dipper repeated, confused. "You mean... like the future and stuff?"

Gideon just nodded and brushed his hand against his amulet, summoning the cards from beneath his table and to his other hand.

When he pulled them up, he spread them out in front of Dipper.

"Just take three cards. One at a time, please."

Dipper slowly reached for them and carefully plucked three from the middle. Gideon gathered the remaining ones and put them back under the table. Tarot cards were easy to make things up for. There was a meaning and then all you had to do was read your client's reactions to what you say and build on it.

"Am I right to assume you've never had a reading before?" Gideon asked.

"Yeah," Dipper replied, raising an eyebrow at his cards.

"I thought so. This is why we're going to do a simple reading. You have chosen three cards that represent your past, present, and most importantly, future."

Now both eyebrows were raised. "This is a simple one?"

"Oh yes, I do much longer ones in private sessions... Let's get started then, shall we?"

Dipper was about to show him the cards but Gideon held up a hand to stop him. He pulled them back to himself, confused.

"You're a visitor! Never been to Gravity Falls before," Gideon said.

Dipper frowned, appearing a bit disappointed. "Yeah... but you knew that already..."

"Visiting a relative you've never met. This must have been difficult for you, wasn't it?"

"I-I guess."

"I see you have trouble trusting people. You've never met Stanford before, why would your parents send you to him?"

Now he looked uncomfortable.

"These are the things that once plagued your mind. It's just part of your nature... perhaps that is why you had trouble making friends? You seem to be a loner but its not by choice." He stretched his hand out and Dipper gave him the card. "The card that represents your past is The Five of Pentacles, just as I thought. You were faced with hopelessness and felt isolated."

Dipper rubbed one of his arms. "Dude, really?"

"There is a good thing about this card," Gideon said cheerfully. "It's in the past. You've overcome it! Good for you! I see that someone is by your side now, supporting you all the way. My advice? Don't lose sight of this person."

He and the audience didn't miss the tiny glance Dipper gave Mabel.

"Your present," Gideon started. Dipper slid the card toward him. Two of Wands, easy. "I see it is closely connected to your past. That makes sense, you're still young."

"Look who's talking," Dipper said under his breath, though it didn't seem to be intended as an insult.

"Something new! Is it a possession? A person? Or... knowledge?" Dipper stiffened and Gideon rolled with it. "I see a pursual! Knowledge it is, then... I can see that you're looking for something now, working towards it. It's not personal, but it _means_ something to you. Your struggle with your past may actually hinder or advance your progress in the present. It is up to you to decide."

"And now... your future," Gideon said.

Dipper slid the card forward and Gideon lifted it up.

What he saw almost made him drop the card. It wasn't even one of _his_. What was it doing there?

The card was pitch black. The only markings on it was a triangle with an eye that seemed to have been roughly scratched onto it with a nail. Was that blood in the corner of it? This wasn't right-

"Um, Gideon?" Dipper whispered.

Gideon looked at him for a moment, then back at the card.

Three of Swords.

...It had changed. The triangle was gone. The card was completely normal. No blood.

The audience was starting to murmur. Bud had taken his hat off and was wiping his brow nervously.

"It must be a doozy!" Mabel said awkwardly from her seat, trying to get the audience to cheer up.

Gideon laughed nervously. "Ha, y-yes... The Three of Swords. It carries a warning.

"This card usually signifies rejection, heartbreak or betrayal. This card does not pair well with the Five of Pentacles. Perhaps the knowledge you pursue will lead to this? You will be betrayed... or perhaps _you_ will be the one who betrays someone close to you. Whatever happens, it will not end well. Tread carefully, Dipper Pines. I advise that once it happens, do not dwell too long on your misfortune. Look ahead."

Gideon slid the card back onto the table so that it laid perfectly aligned with the Five of Pentacles and Two of Wands. Dipper just stared down at them with a look of discomfort.

Mabel began the applause and as soon as the audience caught on, Gideon stood and bowed, gesturing at Dipper to do the same.

"That's all for tonight, folks!" Gideon said cheerfully. Slowly the audience stood and exited the tent, chatting excitedly and occasionally putting money inside Bud's psychic sack. "Thanks for visitin' Lil' Ol' Me!"

When most of the people were gone, he picked up the three cards and looked over them carefully for any image of a triangle. There was no sign of tampering at all. This was ridiculous.

Tarot cards were _fake_. It was a cheap trick he learned to assure people that he was an innocent child doing magic tricks for amusement. Why was he worrying about this so much? Sure, the triangle was mentioned in his journal and it wasn't part of any card he owned, but that didn't mean it _meant_ anything.

But a little nagging voice in his head warned him that it did and that he should be worrying about who the warning was for. Him or Dipper? The boy had chosen the card but it was only Gideon who had seen its face.

He was jerked out of his thoughts by Mabel who had thrown her arms around him. He sputtered and blushed when she released him.

"You were great!" Mabel said. "That dramatic pause with Dipper's card reading almost got me worried but the audience loved it!"

Gideon laughed nervously. "Y-Yeah, dramatic... pause..."

"Can I see your cards?"

"S-Sure." He gathered them up and handed them to her. She shuffled through them eagerly. He was about to ask her what she thought of them but a tap on his shoulder distracted him.

It was Dipper.

"Gideon, can I talk to you?"

"Is this about your reading?" Gideon asked.

Dipper shook his head. "No, no I could tell that part was an act," he said. "I... I actually wanted to talk about last night... At the Dusk 2 Dawn store. Privately."

Gideon glanced at Mabel. She just looked at them and then shrugged. Apparently she didn't care about what they talked about. "Oh. We can talk in my dressing room."

When they entered the dressing room, Dipper let out a soft laugh. "No wonder Mabel likes you. This is her dream room."

"Yes, she was happier than a tornado in a trailer park here," Gideon said, remembering fondly of how Mabel spun around and tried on his many accessories.

Dipper cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Umm, okay. Uh, so... ghosts."

"What about them?"

"They exist and you didn't seem very surprised. There was also that spooky stuff you did, man."

"Reading minds isn't all I do," Gideon offered, taking a seat at his desk.

"That stuff concerns me, but there's something else that bothers me even more. The paranormal things in this town." Dipper walked closer to him and put his hands on the desk. "Nobody _ever_ talks about it. It's obvious that something's going on but it's like nobody sees it."

A crossed out eye...

Gideon gave his head a small shake and then glared at Dipper. "Now, you listen here, Dipper Pines. The mysteries of this town are much too dangerous for a few tourists like you and Mabel. It'll be best to just stick to that ol' Shack of yours. I can't have you dragging Mabel into any more ghost dwellings."

Dipper seemed shocked at his sudden change of tone. "What? But-"

"You don't know what you're dealing with, city boy."

He seemed to have struck a nerve because Dipper's expression immediately morphed into anger. His foot stomped down with a loud thump and he clenched his fists.

"I _know_ that! I _need_ to know what I'm dealing with!" Dipper shouted. "A few days here and Mabel was abducted by gnomes! Gnomes. Do you know how ridiculous that sounds? We could have been killed and we're lucky to have escaped! I need to know what I'm facing here."

Gnomes? Though not surprising, they'd never been mentioned in the Journal.

"What if they had taken her for good? How would I explain that to the cops if they aren't even aware gnomes exist? The Shack... The Shack is just as dangerous. There were these wax figures that came to life and they tried to kill Stan," Dipper said, voice cracking. "Stan doesn't even believe in this stuff! Why? It-it's so obvious! What is _wrong_ with this town? Everyone is so _blind_!"

Gideon couldn't do anything but stare as Dipper had his small meltdown.

"What if I hadn't been with Wendy when they went to the convenience store? They would have found a way inside without me and then who knows what might have happened to them?" Dipper heaved a sigh and leaned against the wall, looking a little hopeless. "The only way to help everyone is to show what's happening. Show it so that everyone knows what they're dealing with."

Gideon abruptly stood. "That's a bad idea, Dipper Pines."

Dipper jumped when all of the items in the room began to glow and float. His eyes darted to each item and then on Gideon himself. "Wh-what are you doing?" he was clearly scared, just as Gideon knew he would be.

"The real things," Gideon started. "The real paranormal things you see? Real magic?"

He let all of the items drop, causing Dipper to flinch. "That scares folks. It torments them when they sleep, forces them to feel unsafe. It can lead to paranoia. It is best that Gravity Falls lives on in blissful ignorance."

"But-"

"Don't think that I _like_ it that way," Gideon said. "For now its for the best."

"Then what am I supposed to do when we get attacked again? I don't have powers. I can't _fight_ them. All I have is... is..." Dipper drifted off, leaving Gideon to wonder what he was going to say. "It's dangerous here. If you care about Mabel... can you at _least_ think about helping me out?"

Gideon frowned, but he didn't even have to think it over. For Mabel? Anything.

"Very well," Gideon said. "If you need something, just give me a call. I'm pretty busy but if I can make time for Mabel I suppose I can make time for you."

Who knew? Maybe becoming familiar with Dipper would benefit him in the future.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bud still dreams of a perfect family.

Breakfast in the Gleeful household was the quietest event of the day.

Bud always woke up before the rest of the family and he would already have breakfast ready for Gideon by the time he made it to the kitchen. Still sleepy with a full meal in front of him, Gideon wouldn’t really complain about anything, much less speak. Bud himself never started a conversation in the morning in fear of angering the boy. He was a social man but that didn’t mean he wanted to be yelled at first thing in the morning.

He always set down three plates. One for him, one for Gideon and one for his wife.

As usual, Gideon trudged in, already dressed with his pompadour sparking. The boy was more focused on the plate of waffles in front of him than Bud. He took only a few short bites before speeding up and becoming so absorbed in it that Bud was sure even an earthquake couldn't shake it from him.

Unlike his son, Bud didn't touch his food. He instead sat in his seat, sipping coffee and reading the newspaper disinterestedly. Occasionally he'd glance down the hall and then at the third plate on the table that remained untouched.

Fifteen minutes later when Gideon was on his second serving, Bud helped himself to his own plate.

His wife wouldn't be joining them today, then.

There was always tomorrow.

Bud was only halfway through his first plate when Gideon finished. He couldn't help but stiffen, worried that Gideon may throw a tantrum over the quality of his food. Usually he ate more ( _"He's a growing boy,"_ ) a distant memory of Mrs. Gleeful whispered in his head.

Gideon hadn't looked at him once this morning, as per usual. He was staring down at the table in front of him, tapping his fingers on it as if waiting for something. What Bud wouldn't give for the ability to read his child's mind...

He almost choked on his coffee when Gideon's eyes flickered from his mother's plate to the hall just as Bud had been doing five minutes ago. Was he _waiting_? After all these months? Could it be that his little Gideon was finally going to-

No. He was leaving.

Bud was desperate to call his son back. Tell him to wait. It was _okay_ to wait. They didn't have to talk, just sit, but his boy had already returned to his room to do god knows what.

When his wife slunk in a minute later with a wary glance around the kitchen and then sat down with an expression of immense relief, Bud felt a tiny piece of his heart shatter.

What in the _heavens_ happened to his perfect family?

* * *

 

Gideon was annoyed. It was way too early to be annoyed but his family just had that effect on him. Every single morning he noticed how his father never spoke to him, how he always kept an eye on the hallway leading to his room, hoping for his wife to come out and join them. When was that old man going to realize it was _never_ going to happen? That he didn’t deserve to eat with his family? Heck, Gideon himself despised eating with him since he… he…

He was getting too flustered. His head was aching and already he had lost his train of thought. Gideon sat at his desk and observed the tiny wooden figures he had begun constructing the night before. He had a cute wooden figure of Mabel and two decent looking ones of her brother and uncle. It was a strange habit, building little figures of people, but it helped him organize things in his head. Too easily he was distracted by his own personal thoughts that he would begin to act irrationally or think too far ahead.

Perhaps if he had done this earlier he would have realized how many dates he had shoved in Mabel’s face too quickly.

He absentmindedly glued a roof onto his popsicle stick Mystery Shack and put it on the center of his desk. Would it be too creepy to visit Mabel again? They had just seen each other the night before, even though it had been brief. He really wasn’t sure how this friend thing worked.

Creepy or not, he _had_ always wanted to take a good look at the land around the Mystery Shack. He had Journal number two and according to that, Journal number one must be in that area. Mabel’s friendship was a free pass to poke around. Although it felt like he was taking advantage of her like this, it wasn’t like he didn’t value her! Heck, he _adored_ her!

That thought didn’t soothe the discomfort he felt over it, though.

He’d wait until later this evening to visit. He had plenty to do here and it wouldn’t hurt to review any information about the location of the other Journal in his own.

* * *

 

It was hours before Bud saw his son leave his room. Had he stayed cooped up in there all day? Bud himself had just spent the entire morning at his dealership. He sold nothing, sadly, but he had given out a few cards at the very least. Gideon seemed to have done nothing but right now he looked ready to head off somewhere.

"What are you up to, boy?" Bud asked.

"Just goin' down to the Mystery Shack," Gideon replied, straightening the cuff of his suit with a bored expression.

"Oh? What for?"

Gideon gave him a 'what do you think' look.

Right. Stan's niece. Bud was becoming less and less sure of whether he appreciated this new relationship or not. The boy needed socialization but with someone from the Pines family? This wouldn't be good for business. What would people think when they saw America's Lil' Gideon associating himself with that pathetic tourist trap?

"You just saw them last night, didn't you?" Bud asked. "Why don't you stay here and... uh..."

He couldn't think of a thing for the boy to do. There was work related things but Bud could hardly stay with him when he had a meeting to go to with the Society. The last thing he wanted to do was tear his family further apart by getting them involved in all _that_ business.

Gideon's arms had crossed and he looked right annoyed.

"Erm, I-I mean, why not bring her here?" At the very least he could keep Gideon from being seen at the Mystery Shack. Maybe once people saw that even "Mr. Mystery's" relatives preferred the Tent of Telepathy then he'd get the business. Anything was better than the alternative.

Gideon seemed to consider it and then shrugged. "Nah, she's already been here and I took her to the factory."

Bud's grin faltered. This wasn't going to work at all, was it?

"A-Alright then," Bud sighed. "Well you have fun now, ya hear? Maybe give her a tour of the town!"

" _That_ ," Gideon said thoughtfully. "Is not a bad idea."

He waved goodbye to his son when he left the house, but as usual got nothing in return.

Bud rubbed his hands together and pulled out a messenger bag stuffed with his red cloak from beneath the sink. Really, sometimes it was a blessing how little Gideon paid attention to him.

* * *

 

As soon as Bud entered the room in which the Society of the Blind Eye held its meetings, he knew Blind Ivan was upset. Oh, he hated it when Ivan was upset, it made everything more tense and serious.

"There has been a disturbance in location #13," Ivan said as soon as everyone was present. "The only reason I know this is because some _teenagers_ were talking about it in the _middle of an arcade_."

Bud and the other members shifted nervously. Obviously somebody had not been doing their job and this meant that they may have to wipe even _more_ minds than they would have had they been keeping an eye on their assigned locations.

"You are just lucky I cannot recall who was in charge of that location," Ivan continued. “I only overheard some minor details, but it is obvious that the specters in that area had been disturbed. I have already sent out two members to keep an eye on those teenagers.”

So two members were missing? How odd, usually they only held meetings when everyone was present. Every meeting was important. Was there something else Ivan wanted to discuss that was so important he need to talk to them _now_? He hoped it didn’t involve him-

“Gleeful.”

"Your boy was seen heading toward that very dwelling the other night,"

Bud almost groaned. Of _course_ Gideon would be involved.

"I'm sure it's not what you-" he started, but was cut off by the other members.

"That boy has been treading on dangerous territory and it’s about time our Society has done something about it! Permanently!"

"Do we really want to go through that again? I still have the _scars_."

"We have the advantage this time! Last time he came to us with full knowledge of what we were but this time if we can-"

"Isn't he psychic?"

More murmurs.

"Gleeful, what do _you_ think?" Blind Ivan asked, turning toward him again.

Bud winced. "M-Me?"

"You _are_ the child's father. He is psychic, is he not? What are the chances of him spotting us?"

Well, all things considered, Gideon wouldn't see them at all. He wasn't really psychic, but the Society didn't know that. He'd never tell them that, though. Bad for business.

And, you know, for his son's safety.

"Erm, Gideon's very sensitive to thoughts about him. He'd catch you thinking about capturing him. I-It would be impossible to surprise my son," Bud said. He changed his tone to a much lighter one. "Every year we try to surprise him on his birthday. This time we're not even gonna bother-"

"There you have it, gentlemen," Ivan said, clapping his hands together. "The only chance of erasing that child's memory is when we're not thinking about it. Unfortunately, that means it will be unlikely we'll _ever_ be able to erase the child's memory if we plan it."

"So what do we do?"

"It's simple. For now we forget about it."

One of the members pulled out the memory gun.

"Not like that!" Ivan snapped, shaking his head and snatching it out of that member’s hand. "If you happen to come across Lil' Gideon Gleeful while you are in possession of our relic, than you may open fire and, if possible, bring him in. There is still quite a bit the child must forget."

Bud's stomach churned. Oh, he really hoped that would never happen. He doubted the members would be brave enough to try and bring Gideon in but that didn't mean he couldn't worry about it.

“It’s settled then,” Ivan said, clapping his hands together. “Meeting adjourned.”

This was a terrible meeting, but at least it was over. Now he could just go home and-

“Bud Gleeful, a word, if you please…”

Gosh darnit.

“Can I help you?” Bud asked, turning toward Ivan.

“I couldn’t help but notice you seemed agitated when I began to question you.”

“Oh… I was just caught off guard. Wasn’t agitated at all!” Bud said quickly. “I love talkin’ ‘bout my boy!”

"One might think you would _lie_ to protect that _boy_ ," Ivan said coolly.

Bud could feel himself sweating under his robes but managed to keep up his cheery facade. "Now, I of all people know my son needs a timeout! I say a memory wipe would solve that problem real quick and it sure would decrease my usage of it, now wouldn't it?"

"It would," Ivan agreed. Whatever suspicion he held earlier seemed to have vanished, thank heavens. "Surely you can think of some way to bring your son in?"

He could hardly bear thinking about it. Gideon was - had been - a sweetheart! A little on the spoiled side, yes, but he had never threatened or hurt them before. Something went wrong with his child and he wasn't going to use the _Society_ to try and fix it. Not after what happened last time. His angel was still in there somewhere, he _knew_ it and he wasn't going to risk accidentally wiping it completely.

“I can promise to try!” Bud said. “It won’t be easy though, I can tell you that.”

It was a good thing he was terrible at keeping promises.

* * *

 

Gideon’s plans to explore the area around the Shack were cancelled when the first person he ran into was Dipper. He wasn’t particularly distressed about it, he’d still probably be able to see Mabel.

“Hey, Gideon,” Dipper said, peering at him over a piece of paper he had been reading. He wasn’t wearing his vest for some reason.

“Howdy,” Gideon greeted. “What have you got there?”

"Shopping list. I'm just running some errands for Stan while he's out. _Mabel_ doesn't have to do anything." Dipper jerked his thumb at the edge of the woods bitterly. "She's with Wendy. I think she’s taking pictures or something? I’m not sure."

“Erm, how’d you know I was looking for her?”

Oh, so that’s what it felt like to receive one of _those_ stares. He hastily thanked Dipper and went into the direction he had been pointed toward. It didn’t take long to find her, they weren’t far and he could see Wendy’s hair already. Apparently the same could be said for his because Wendy was pointing at him and talking to who he assumed was Mabel behind a stump.

"Hi Gideon!" Mabel said, poking her head up from behind the stump and waving at him.

He waved back. "Hey there!"

When Mabel ducked back behind the stump Gideon glanced at Wendy.

"Corduroy," he greeted coolly. She _was_ one of the reason's Mabel had been possessed, after all.

Wendy grimaced and glanced in Mabel's direction uncertainly. She looked back at him and cleared her throat. "Uh... 'sup, man?"

"I just thought I'd pay Mabel a visit," Gideon said. He lowered his voice so that only she’d hear. "Alone."

For a brief second Wendy looked irritated.

"Fine, I'll just leave you two to it," Wendy said. "See ya later, Mabel."

"Bye Wendy!"

The redhead waved goodbye and then hightailed it back to the Mystery Shack.

"What're you up to?" Gideon asked.

Mabel grinned and swung herself onto the stump she had been behind. In her hands she held out a large pink scrapbook to him. "Just fixin' up my summer scrapbook!"

“In the middle of the forest?”

“ _Duh_.”

Gideon took it in his hands and sat down on the stump with her, flipping through it. Most of it was blank but there was a few picture of things around the Mystery Shack and some pictures of the forest which he assumed she had just taken. He wondered if scrapbooking was a big hobby of Mabel's. He had his own scrapbook at home, though he preferred to post photos on walls, and he knew his mother had an old one of when he was-

He jumped when Mabel slammed a finger on a page that had what looked like a small strand of hair on it.

"That's Dipper's first chest hair! I _just_ put that in there!"

She caught it just before it hit the ground when he dropped it, laughing at the expression on his face. He just coughed awkwardly and took the book back, turning to the last few pages.

When he found a page titled: _Summer Romances_ , he froze.

"What's this?" he asked. He was impressed with how steady his voice was.

"My Summer Romances!" Mabel said.

"Umm, why am I on here?" Gideon asked, pointing at a photograph of himself that they had taken on the first day they met. He thought she hadn't seen him that way... was it possible that she did sort of like him?

Mabel put a finger to her chin. "We did technically go out," she said. "It just didn't work in the end."

It would have worked! He could have _made_ it work! Before that dangerous thought could get any further, Gideon's attention was drawn to a photo of a boy he had never seen before.

"That was Norman," Mabel said, blushing. "He turned out to be a bunch of gnomes..."

“You plan to have quite the romantic voyage, do you?” Gideon asked, rubbing a blank page between his fingers. Gnomes or not, jealousy burned in the pit of his stomach.

“It’s gonna be dreamy!”

Well…

That simply wouldn’t do.

Oh, Gideon knew that his romantic feelings toward her made her uncomfortable but that didn’t mean he was going to just stand by and let some tall dark stranger steal his peach dumplin’! Nobody deserved her and if he couldn’t have her then nobody could.

And who knew? Maybe once he got rid of all the competition… Mabel will see how perfect they are for each other.

Of course Mabel could never know about his little plan. She would be heartbroken, betrayed, maybe even angry. He would have to try harder than ever to conceal his lingering crush on her. He would be the perfect friend.

“Now that you’re here, what do you wanna do?” Mabel asked.

Gideon handed the scrapbook back to her. "I was thinkin' about showing you around the town."

"Oh, really? That's great! We can spy on Stan!"

Gideon looked around, noticing for the first time that the Mystery Shack was not giving any tours today.

"Where is Stanford, anyway?"

"Out on a date," Mabel cheerfully replied.

Gideon couldn't help but laugh. "Excuse me? A date? Are we talking about the same Stanford?"

She pouted and shoved him. "Come on! He's not that bad!"

"Honey, I've lived in this town for almost my whole life and not _once_ have I ever seen Stanford show any interest in a woman whatsoever," Gideon said.

It was weird to think he knew her great uncle much longer than she did but he had spoken the truth. Stan would make the occasional remark to a woman but it was always obvious he was never truly interested. It was something Bud always poked fun of when Gideon bothered to listen.

" _Almost_ your whole life?"

"Oh, um, when I was four we moved back down south... My daddy was looking for new work since his car dealership wasn't doin’ so good at the time." Still wasn't, to be honest.

She leaned forward with interest. "How far south?"

"Texas..."

"Oooh! That explains the whole country thing!"

Gideon chuckled. "'Spose so, but my daddy had lived in Texas his whole life so that had a bigger influence on me since he raised me an' all."

"What's Texas like, anyway?"

"Hot. Big cities, small towns. Took hours to get anywhere." A distant memory of sitting in his mother's lap as they snoozed in their trailer invaded his mind. Gideon tugged at his collar, frowning. "Too much exposure to the sun was horrible for my skin and the weather was too varied. We had to leave for health reasons."

"I guess you can't visit me in California, then," Mabel said, causing his heart to be rapidly. Had he accidentally denied an invitation? "It's _really_ sunny there. Did you come back here?"

"That's right. When I was almost seven we came back here and eventually... you know..." Gideon gestured at himself. "Lil' Gideon."

She looked like she was about to ask how _that_ came to be so he quickly changed the topic.

"So, California, huh?"

"Yup! Piedmont! Small town. It's kind of like Gravity Falls but there aren't any big forests," Mabel said. She stuck out her tongue. "Everything's so neat there and they never let you do anything crazy! That's what I like about here, you can do almost anything!"

"That's true... this town is nothin' like any other place and it has an _extremely_ colorful history. We should stop by the museum and I'll show you what I mean," Gideon said. Although, from a few things he read about in his Journal, not everything was true. "This town's different. It's people too."

"Oh! That reminds me," Mabel said, popping up into a straighter position. "Stan's throwing a big weekend party!"

This actually surprised Gideon. "A party? He's never thrown one before." First dating and now parties? What has gotten into him?

"I think it’s gonna be great! I saw silly string on Dipper's list and there were banners and a disco ball! He said we'd even have a DJ!" Mabel stood up and did a little dance. "It'll be the perfect opportunity to make new friends!"

"New friends?" He couldn't help the way his voice sounded so hurt.

She smiled at him reassuringly. " _More_ friends! You're still my summer bestie, Gideon! Hey, maybe you can introduce me to some of _your_ friends."

He wasn't sure which problem to address first. The no friends thing or that he probably wouldn't be allowed entry. Thankfully, Mabel didn't give him a chance and instead insisted they hurry on to that museum he was talking about before it closed.

* * *

 

When they reached the museum and Gideon’s eyes landed on the doors, he was hit with a huge sense of foreboding. He froze, causing Mabel to almost trip into him. She didn’t seem too concerned and just stepped around him, then looked back with a cheerful smile.

"Come on, Gideon, aren't you coming?" Mabel asked.

"Um..." The feeling was _not_ going away. Instead, it seemed to intensify the longer her stared at the museum doors. Like some dark shadow was weighing down in his head, keeping pressure on his mind.

Mabel looked back and forth between him and the doors, confused.

"Would it be too bizarre to say I suddenly have a very bad feeling about this?" Gideon asked.

And then, as if that shadow presence had heard him, it vanished. Still, he didn't want to go in anymore.

"Is it because your dad's in there?"

Gideon started at that. "What?"

“Your dad,” Mabel repeated, pointing through the glass doors at Mr. Gleeful who was approaching them, although he hadn’t seemed to notice them yet.

Gideon grabbed Mabel’s wrist and dragged her to the side and out of view just as Bud exited the building.

“Why are we hiding?” Mabel whispered.

“We ain’t hiding,” Gideon said. “We’re just avoiding him.”

“Oh… Why?”

“You don’t know my daddy,” Gideon said, rolling his eyes. “He’s real annoying when you get to know him. You know, parents.”

Mabel laughed softly as they watched Bud scurry out of the museum. As much as he didn’t like talking to, or about, his dad, Gideon couldn’t help but wonder what he had been doing in there. The museum was only free on pioneer day and Bud could be quite stingy with money. Wasn’t he going to be working today?

“Still don’t feel like going to the museum?” Mabel asked, bumping him with her hip.

Curiosity was egging him on, telling him, “Why not? Just go in… see what he was up to… Won’t take long,” but that feeling he had earlier had to have meant something. If his instinct was telling him not to go in then… well, he wasn’t.

“I’m gonna have to say I’m not feelin’ up to it,” Gideon said. “There go our plans…”

“It’s okay. We can tour the rest of the town and spy on Stan tonight like I said!” Mabel said, winking. “Dipper gets weird feelings all the time. Usually I ignore him because, you know, brothers.”

“Come on, let’s go take pictures of the town, this scrapbook isn’t going fill itself!”


End file.
